Southern Italian/"Red Sauce" in LA

[JBinOC]

Looking for solid, reliable, Southern Italian "red sauce" anywhere in LA, the SFV, or thereabouts.

Something
* low-key, unpretentious
* family-owned
* similar to places you stumble upon all over in the outer boroughs of NY or South Philly
....would be a plus.

Absolutely NO places that have pizza or "brick-oven" pies on the menu.
(Envision menus with 10 appetizers, then about half a dozen pasta/chicken/veal/fish items,
including at least one "Chicken a-la [Chef's name]" and/or "Vitello a-la [Chef's name].)

I really am clueless about LA Italian and I welcome all the help. Thanks.

[NYCnowLA]

Vito in Santa Monica

[estone888]

Matteo's on Westwood Blvd. near Pico would seem to fit the bill. It is far less Hollywood than Dan Tana's, less expensive, easier to get into and the food is good, not great, but good. No pizzas and pretty much the variety the OP was asking for.
http://matteosla.com/about-matteos/

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Dan Tana's Restaurant
9071 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90069

[lapizzamaven]

I think Matteo's/Hoboken qualifies as old school red sauce...though they kinda modernized a couple years ago the old dishes are still on the menu, from spaghetti and meatballs to lasagna to a baked ziti...

[getmeabib]

Well, you got the clueless part right. There is no low-key, unpretentious "red sauce" Italian in L.A. without pizza. Sorry. Follow the recommendations and ignore the pizza. Or go hungry. Your choice.

[rjw_lgb_ca]

I can think of my go-to place near my house-- in Long Beach: Ferraro's, at the corner of Palo Verde and Los Coyotes Diagonal in the Plaza neighborhood. The owner is a paisan' from Calabria, and the food is absolutely unpretentious and hearty and comfortingly good. As a bonus, there's practically no atmosphere, just a lot of locals enjoying good ol' red-sauce calabrese food.

If you want a culinary trip up to Rome, they have a great spaghetti puttanesca-- and you can add a couple of meatballs or sausages and really live it up.

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Ferraro's Cucina Italiana At Los Coyotes Diagonal
3500 N Los Coyotes Diagonal, Long Beach, CA 90808

[Servorg]

Although, if they do have pizza on their menu (and if we are to also take the OP at their word) eliminates them from his/her's list of places to go for red sauce Italian food (and which probably will always mystify me as to why the OP thinks pizza disqualifies them from having good red sauce style Italian food).

[rjw_lgb_ca]

This Ferraro's has pizza, yes. You should know that the menu you attached is not for this Ferraro's, but one run by a relative that USED to be located at PCH and Loynes-- the same minimall that contains the wonderful jalisqueño restaurant Enrique's. The space is now occupied by a VERY promising French bistro called Brulée.

[Servorg]

Just so I don't mislead future readers of this thread I'm going to go back in and get rid of my bad menu link page. Thanks for pointing that out.

[cls]

I think the OP is disqualifying "pretentious pizza"

[Servorg]

Aha...I hate it when the pizza uses big words and talks over my head! ;-D>

[Cubancoffee]

We love Scarantino's in Glendale. It's totally unpretentious, though they serve pizza. It's the kind of place where Sollozzo and McCluskey got it in "The Godfather" (which I mean as a compliment).

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Scarantino's
2055 E Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA

[WildSwede]

I was going to say Scarantino's. Definitely old school red sauce. I love their tomato sauce (Napoli sauce). That bread is to die for! Wish I knew where they got it from!!

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Scarantino's
2055 E Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA

[Burger Boy]

Petrillo's
Di Pilla's

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Petrillo's Pizza Restaurant
833 E Valley Blvd, San Gabriel, CA 91776

Di Pilla's Italian Restaurant
9013 Valley Blvd, Rosemead, CA 91770

[maudies5]

Dan Tanas has a really good red sauce. However, I wouldn't exactly describe it as "low key or unpretentious." No pizza oven and not huge menu.

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Dan Tana's Restaurant
9071 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90069

[cls]

Micelli's or Palermo maybe? This isn't for food though...